HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Turnovers help Spring-Ford past Methacton

A defensive end a year ago when he enjoyed the freedom of a run-at-’em and wreck-’em approach, the Spring-Ford junior has moved inside to tackle and adapted well to his new responsibilities ... jamming it up and creating big plays, among them.

So with the Rams clinging to a narrow 10-7 lead halfway through the third quarter of Saturday afternoon’s Pioneer Athletic Conference game with stubborn Methacton, Romano didn’t just come up with one big play, but two of them.

When teammate Zameer McDowell deflected a Methacton pass at the line, Romano was there to pull it in. Two snaps later, touchdown. Then, one play after the ensuing kickoff Methacton fumbleed, and Romano was there to pounce on it. Seven plays later, touchdown.

And, for all intents and purposes, game.

The Rams would add another score in the fourth quarter and roll up what would seem to be a rather one-sided 31-7 Homecoming win. But it was anything but until Romano’s momentum-changing — and game-changing — plays on the defensive side of the ball.

“When we make a big play, like that interception (and fumble recovery), the whole team gets pumped up,” said Romano, an undersized but tenacious 6-foot, 210-pound junior. “Some days it’s the offense that picks us up, some days it’s the defense.”

This time, despite quarterback Hank Coyne’s three touchdown passes and the running tandem of Yousef Lundi (109 yards) and Tate Carter (54 yards, 1 TD), it was indeed defense for Spring-Ford, which improved to 4-1 (6-1 overall).

The Warriors would use quarterback Brandon Bossard’s 66-yard run on the third play of the game to set up Dillen White’s three-yard touchdown on the following play. Combined with Jose Holland’s placement, it gave them a 7-0 lead just 1:41 in. But their three other first-half possessions produced just 38 net yards as the Warriors advanced the chains just once.

Spring-Ford, meanwhile, got back to even when Coyne (17 of 22 for 166 yards) found McDowell in the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown toss. The hosts then went in front when David Gulati converted a 31-yard field goal.

But a three-point lead wasn’t anything to shout about.

“We came out in the second half and go three-and-out,” Spring-Ford head coach Chad Brubaker said. “But then our defense set us up to give us a little cushion.”

The defense, or Romano to be specific, set them up with those two turnovers.

“We seem to struggle if there is a lot of green (field) in front of us,” Brubaker said. “We don’t have that breakaway speed (with standout tailback Jarred Jones sidelined with a broken wrist).

“But getting two short fields like we did can make all the difference in the world. That’s a momentum shift for sure. It puts (the opponent’s) backs against the wall.”

It did on Saturday.“I give a lot of credit to our own defense for keeping it 10-7 at the half,” said Methacton head coach Paul Lepre. “Our defense was on the field for a long time, but did a good job keeping us in (the game). Then in the second half we didn’t generate much offense, and the two turnovers gave (Spring-Ford) the short fields. You just can’t do that.”

The Rams actually went three-and-out on their first two possessions of the second half. But McDowell deflected Bossard’s pass into Romano’s hands and he returned it 11 yards to the Warriors’ 27. Lundi took a handoff nine yards, then Coyne found Gary Hopkins in the right corner of the end zone from 18 yards out with 5:28 left in the third quarter. Methacton took over following the kickoff on its own 36, but fumbled on first down and Romano recovered back at the 21. Coyne sneaked for three to convert a fourth-and-inches dilemma, then Carter took three straight handoffs — the last one covering a yard for six points and a 24-7 lead with 2:20 left in the third quarter.

“We were worried about Bossard,” Romano said. “We were worried about his speed, about him getting outside.”

Bossard, who was pressured and hurried (and sacked four times) that translated into a 5-for-19 afternoon, was certainly on the run a good part of the day. He took 15 snaps himself for 105 of the Warriors’ 139 yards on the ground. But his team simply couldn’t execute what it set out to do against the Spring-Ford defense.

“(Spring-Ford’s defense did a great job taking away what we game-planned for,” Lepre said. “We tried to make something happen.

“We went in with three double-tight (end) packages, but we weren’t getting any push, weren’t getting any blocks. It just didn’t work out. We had to stay the course, but (Spring-Ford) took it away from us. And you have to give them credit because their strength is usually their offense.”

The offense — which capped the scoring on Coyne’s 22-yard pass to Hopkins at the 9:53 mark of the fourth quarter. — did just fine.

So did that defense.“We just have to makes plays happen at times,” Romano said. “We have to do our jobs.”

NOTESR.J. Sheldon had two of the Rams’ four sacks, with Kyle Hoffner adding one. The fourth was credited as a team sack after Bossard tripped attempting to get outside on a late pass play. ... Methacton’s Tom Collis and Chris He also had a sack apiece, with Nico Williams coming up with a pick of Coyne in the first half. ... Hopkins (50 yards) and Carter (40 yards) each caught five passes. ... Holland punted four times — with all four going exactly 32 yards.